Flowers On and Iraq Oil Privatization Off the Table for Mothers Day

This Mothers Day, Let's Put Flowers On and Take Oil Privatization Off the Table!

Morning Glory Picture by Rodger Caldwell.

June and Rodger Caldwell offer this to you in love and honor of our own deceased mothers: Madeline Caldwell, who served in the Woman's Air Corp in an honorable war, World War II; and Shirley Lavenberg, who served building planes for that honorable war, and taught June the importance of participating in Democracy, taking all day to serve as an Election Volunteer each election during her entire adult life.

Although we pray for no more war funding this is an important first step.

> Please take a moment to sign the Petition at the web address below (just copy and paste into your browser) to email to your Congress Rep to take Iraq Privatization out of the Benchmarks in the Dem War Funding Bill:

http://action.priceofoil.org/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=6978&t=wide.dwt

> More detail from Dennis Kucinich on that 'Benchmark' at the web address here (just copy and paste the address below into your browser):

http://campaignsandelections.com/oh/releases/index.cfm?ID=483

> As originally envisioned, "Mother's Day" was a call for social activism for peace by women. Here is the original Mother's Day Proclamation by Julia Ward Howe, Boston, 1870:

"Arise, then, women of this day! Arise all women who have hearts, whether our baptism be that of water or of fears! Say firmly: 'We will not have great questions decided by irrelevant agencies. Our husbands shall not come to us, reeking with carnage, for caresses and applause. Our sons shall not be taken from us to unlearn all that we have been able to teach them of charity, mercy and patience. We women of one country will be too tender of those of another country to allow our sons to be trained to injure theirs. From the bosom of the devastated earth a voice goes up with our own. It says 'Disarm, Disarm! The sword of murder is not the balance of justice.' Blood does not wipe our dishonor nor violence indicate possession. As men have often forsaken the plow and the anvil at the summons of war, let women now leave all that may be left of home for a great and earnest day of counsel. Let them meet first, as women, to bewail and commemorate the dead. Let them then solemnly take counsel with each other as to the means whereby the great human family can live in peace, each bearing after their own time the sacred impress, not of Caesar, but of God. In the name of womanhood and of humanity, I earnestly ask that a general congress of women without limit of nationality may be appointed and held at some place deemed most convenient and at the earliest period consistent with its objects, to promote the alliance of the different nationalities, the amicable settlement of international questions, the great and general interests of Peace."

Peace